By Associated Press, 09/03/02

Fall River Bishop Sean Patrick O'Malley conducts Mass at St. Anne's Church last month. (AP Photo)

FALL RIVER -- A bishop known for his tough policies on sexual abuse was named Tuesday by Pope John Paul II to lead the Diocese of Palm Beach, replacing a bishop who quit after admitting he molested a student years ago.

Bishop Sean Patrick O'Malley served as bishop in Fall River, Mass., since 1992, when he was called in to clean up a sexual abuse scandal surrounding allegations against a former priest.

O'Malley is credited with establishing a model system for dealing with sexual abuse accusations against priests, which include referring victims to social workers unaffiliated with the church and conducting background checks for all employees and volunteers.

In Palm Beach, O'Malley's appointment follows two pedophilia scandals.

Bishop J. Keith Symons admitted in 1998 that he molested five altar boys decades earlier and quickly resigned. He was replaced by Bishop Anthony J. O'Connell, whose outgoing nature helped the church move forward after Symons' abrupt departure.

In March, O'Connell, 63, admitted that he inappropriately touched a student at a Missouri seminary in the late 1970s. The teenager had sought counseling from O'Connell after being abused by another priest.

O'Malley, who assured the public that his background is free of scandals and accusations, said he plans to implement at least some of the policies he started in Fall River.

"The whole church feels the pain of this scandal and is anxious to try to bring some healing and reconciliation to our families and communities that have been so shaken by these sad events and by the mishandling of these situations on the part of the church," O'Malley said. "I see there are great needs here and I will do my best to meet those needs."

O'Malley, 58, was born in Lakewood, Ohio, and served as bishop in Saint Thomas, Virgin Islands, before his transfer to Fall River a decade ago.

In the 1970s, he ran the Catholic Hispanic Center in Washington, D.C., served as vicar for the Hispanic, Portuguese and Haitian communities and headed the church's Office of Social Ministry.

He laid down new policies in Fall River in 1994 after the Rev. James Porter pleaded guilty to molesting 28 children and was sentenced to 18 to 20 years in prison.

Under O'Malley's system, abuse victims are referred to a social worker unaffiliated with the church. The social worker has a group of mental health and legal professionals that sits as a review board to decide what kind of action could be taken against the priest and what kinds of services are needed to help the victim.

In 1995, the Diocese of Fall River said, O'Malley made it mandatory that any priest, seminarian, employee or volunteer whose position involved access to children take part in an abuse prevention workshop, complete a detailed questionnaire about his or her past, and agree to a criminal records check. More than 17,000 employees and volunteers have met those requirements, the diocese said.

In the Porter cases, the diocese paid for therapy, medication and residential treatment for the victims.

"Bishop O'Malley was incredibly empathetic to the victims. He was not only empathetic, but he listened to the victims," said Roderick MacLeish, a lawyer who represented victims in civil lawsuits filed in the Porter case.

At least 300 priests have been taken off duty since the sexual abuse crisis erupted in January with the case of a former Boston priest who was shuffled between parishes despite evidence he molested children.

America's bishops pledged in June to do more to support victims and move aggressively against guilty priests by permanently removing offenders from any church work, and in some cases, from the priesthood altogether.

O'Malley said he planned to do all that's "humanly possible" at the diocese. He will be installed Oct. 19.

The Rev. Raymond Maher, a priest at St. Jude Catholic Church in Boca Raton, Fla., called the new appointment a "great blessing."

"I know that his reputation as a great healer and a great administrator precedes him," Maher said.

The Diocese of Fall River said it is expected that O'Malley will be installed in Palm Beach within the next two months. In the meantime he will return to Fall River, where a successor has not yet been named.